Debate in The British Parliament: 40th Anniversary of The 1984 Ethiopia Famine

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አረመኔዎቹ ጋላ-ኦሮሞዎች ዳቦውን ከዚህች ጨቅላ አፍ ነጥቆ ለጎረቤት አህዛብ ሸጡት😢😢😢 ዋይ! ዋይ! ዋይ! 😠😠😠

💭 በእንግሊዝ ፓርላማ የተደረገ ውይይት፤ የ፲፱፻፸፯ቱ/1984ቱ የኢትዮጵያ ረሃብ ፵/40ኛ ዓመት መታሰቢያ

በእኛ ዘመን አቆጣጠር በ፲፱፻፸፯/1977 እ.አ.አ በ1984 ዓ.ም በኢትዮጵያ የተከሰተውን ረሃብ መከላከል ይቻል ነበር። ዛሬ ሌላ ትግራይ ላይ የሚደርሰውን አደጋ ለመከላከል እውቀትና ሃብት አለን።

ባብዛኛው በረሃብ ወቅት ከ0.5 እስከ 2 ሚሊዮን ኢትዮጵያውያን ሞት ምክንያት የጋላ-ኦሮሞው የመንገስቱ ኃይለማርያም ደርግ አገዛዝ ተጠያቂ ነው። እርግጥ ነው፣ ሰውየው ለፍርድ ቀርቦ አያውቅም፣ ያለ ምንም ቅጣት ዛሬም ግፍ ለሚፈጽሙ ለሌሎች አርአያ ሆኖ አያውቅም። አውሬው በዚምባቡዌ ይኖራል።

ብሪታኒያው ሎርድ አልቶን በትግራይ የተፈፀመውን የዘር ማጥፋት ወንጀል እና ምግብን የጦር መሳሪያ ያደረጉ እና እንዲህ አይነት ስቃይ ያደረሱትን ወንጀለኞች ለፍርድ አለመቅረቡ ዛሬም መቀጠሉን በሰፊው አውስተዋል፤

“እ.ኤ.አ. በ1984 የኢትዮጵያ አገዛዝ አብዮቱ አዲስ የብልጽግና ዘመን እንዳመጣ ዓለም እንዲያምን ፈልጎ ነበር፣ እናም የውጭ ለጋሾች በቢቢሲ ዜና ላይ እየሞቱ ያሉ ህፃናትን ፎቶ እስኪያዩ ድረስ የረሃብን ማስጠንቀቂያ አላመኑም ነበር።”

እ.ኤ.አ. በሴፕቴምበር 2023 የፓርቲ አቋራጭ ጥያቄን መርቻለሁ፣ 'በትግራይ ጦርነቱ ሶስት ፈረሰኞች፡ የጅምላ ግድያ፣ ጾታዊ ጥቃት እና ረሃብ' በሚል ርዕስ ዘገባ አሳተመ። የብሪታኒያ መንግስት እና ሌሎች ተዋናዮች ከተፈጠረው ነገር ክብደት እና መጠን ጋር የሚመጣጠን ምላሽ እንዲሰጡ ጠይቋል። በትግራይ ውስጥ ያለው ረሃብ ያልተፈለገ የግጭት ውጤት ሳይሆን በክብርት ባሮነስ ሌዲ ሄሊክ አገላለጽ፡ 'የጦርነት ዘዴ' መሆኑ በግልፅ ተቀምጧል። ያ ግኝቱ በአዲስ መስመር ጥያቄ ላይ ተዘርዝሯል፣ የጦርነት ዘዴ መሆኑም በገልጽ ተደምድሟል።

ዓላማቸው የትግራይ ተወላጆችን በሙሉም ሆነ በከፊል ለማጥፋት በማሰብ መሆኑ ግልጽ ነው።

ረሃቡ፤ በማሰቃየት፣ በአስገድዶ መድፈር፣ በአካል ማጉደል እና በፆታዊ ጥቃት የሚቀሰቅሰው የዘር ማጥፋት ወንጀል አንዱ መስፈርት ነው። ሌላው መመዘኛ - የዘር ማጥፋትን በሚታወጅበት ጊዜ ግምት ውስጥ ከሚገቡት ምክንያቶች አንዱ፤ መውሊድን በስልት በመከላከል፤ "የትግራይ ማህፀን በፍፁም መውለድ የለበትም" በሚለው የአገዛዙ መፈክር ይገለጻል።

እ.ኤ.አ ኦክቶበር 2021 ዓ.ም የተባበሩት መንግስታት የአደጋ ጊዜ እርዳታ አስተባባሪ ማርክ ሎውኮክ በትግራይ ስላለው ሁኔታ፣ እርዳታ ወደ ክልሉ እንዳይገባ ለማድረግ የተደረገውን ሙከራ ጨምሮ አስተያየት ሰጥተዋል። የሚከተሉት የማርክ ሎውኮክ ቃላቶች ናቸው።

"ስድስት ሚሊዮን ሰዎችን ለግደል የተደረገ ሙከራ ብቻ ሳይሆን እየሆነ ያለውን ነገር ሁሉ ለመደበቅ የሚደረግ ሙከራም ነው እየታየ ያለው። በጨዋታው እየተመለከትን ያለነው፣ በ21ኛው ክፍለ ዘመን በዓለም ላይ ካጋጠመው በጣም የከፋው ረሃብ ሊሆን እንደሚችል አስባለሁ… እየሆነ ያለው የኢትዮጵያ ባለስልጣናት እርዳታ ወደ ትግራይ ውስጥ እንዳይገባ ለማድረግ የተራቀቀ ዘመቻ እያካሄዱ ነው፣ እርዳታ ለማከፋፈል ለምሳሌ የማይቻል ያደረጉበ መንገድ፤ የከባድ መኪና አሽከርካሪዎች ከሹማምንቶችና ሚሊሻዎች ጋር ኬላ በመትከል፣ ነዳጅ እንዳይገባ በመከልከል እንዲንቀሳቀሱ... ለማድረግ እየሞከሩ ያሉት የትግራይን ህዝብ ለመገዛት ወይም ከህልውና ውጭ ለማድረግ ነው እንጂ አሁንም ሊፈጠር የሚችለውን እኩይ ተግባር ለማስወገድ አይደለም። ይህ በሚሊዮን የሚቆጠሩ ሰዎችን ህይወት የሚቀጥፍ ረሃብ ለመፍጠር ሆን ተብሎ ከተሳካ ሙከራ ጋር ይዛመዳል።

እ.ኤ.አ. በ2021 የፊንላንድ የውጭ ጉዳይ ሚኒስትር እና የአውሮፓ ህብረት ልዩ መልዕክተኛ የሆኑት ፔካ ሃቪስቶ ከጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር አብይ እና ከሌሎች ሚኒስትሮች ጋር ያደረጉትን ውይይት ተከትሎ፣ "ለመቶ/100 አመት ትግራዮችን ጠራርጎ ሊጨርስ ያቀደ አደገኛ መሪ ነው"” ማለታቸውን በማውሳት ሎርድ አልቶን ገለጻቸውን በሰፊው ቀጥለዋል።

😢😢😢 ዋይ! ዋይ! ዋይ! 😠😠😠

😢😢😢 ዋይ! ዋይ! ዋይ! 😠😠😠

😢😢😢 ዋይ! ዋይ! ዋይ! 😠😠😠

😈 አይይይ ጋላ-ኦሮሞ! አይይይ ኦሮማራ! አይይይ ፋኖ/ቄሮ/ሸኔ! አይይይ ሕወሓት! አይይይ ሻዕቢያ! አይይይ ፕሮቴስታንቶች! አይይይ መሀመዳውያን! አይይይ ሉሲፈራውያኑ አጋሮቻቸው ሁሉ! እግዚአብሔር አምላክ ፈጥኖ ይይላችሁ! የሲኦል እና የገሃነም የዘላለም ፍርዱንና እሳቱን በቶሎ ያምጣባችሁ! አይይይይይይ!

ከሳምንት በፊት ቅዳሜ ዕለት ሱፐር ማርኬት ገብቼ ልከፍል ስል ካርድም በቂ ገንዘብም አልያስኩም ነበር፤ ገንዘብ ተቀባይዋን፤ 'በቃ አንዱን ውሃ መልሽልኝ፤ ስንት ነው የጎደለኝ?” ስላት “ግድየልም አርባ ሳንቲም ነው” አልችኝ እና ከሳጥኗ አርባ ሳንቲም አውጥታ ሞላችልኝ። ክትናንትና ወዲያ ቅዳሜ ዕለትም በዚያው ሱፐር ማርኬት በተመሳሳይ መልክ አርባ ሳንቲም ጎድሎኝ ሌላው ገንዘብ ተቀባይ እንዲሁ ሞላችልኝ። እንዲህ ያለ ነገር በጭራሽ ገጥሞኝ አያውቅም። ወዲያው የታየኝ፤ “የእግዚአብሔር መላ ዕክት ሊጠቁመኝ የፈለገው ነገር አለ” የሚለው ሃሳብ ነበር። ሰሞኑን ብዙ ተዘርዝረው የማያልቁ ተጋጣጣሚ ክስተቶች ሲከሰቱ እየታዘብኩ ነው። የቅዱሳን መላዕክት በእኛ አቅራቢያ መኖር ከሚታወቁባቸው ክስተቶች አንዱ ደግሞ አጋጣሚ ወይም ተገጣጣሚ ሁኔታዎች ናቸው።

እንግዲህ አርባ ሳንቲሙ በኢትዮጵያ በወገናችን ላይ ከአርባ ዓመት በፊት የተከሰተውን የዘር ማጥፋት ረሃብ እና ከሁለት ሳምንት በኋላ በአክሱማዊቷ ኢትዮጵያ ላይ የተከፈተውን የዘር ማጥፋት ጦርነት አራተኛ ዓመት ጠቁሞኛል ብል አላጋነንኩም። ለሌላ ነገርም ምልክት ሊሆን ይችላል...

የዚህን አስቃቂ የዘር ማጥፋት ረሃብ አርባኛ ዓመት እና እየተካሄደ ያለውንም የአራት አመቱን መታሰቢያ መርሃ ግብር፣ የጸሎት ሥርዓታት፣ የድምጽና የምስል ዘገባዎች እና ጽሑፎች፣ ድራማዎች ወዘተ ማዘጋጀት የሚገባን እኛ 'ኢትዮጵያውያን ነን፣ ክርስቲያኖች ነን' የምንለው እንጂ የብሪታኒያ ፓርላማ ወይንም የሮይተርስ የዜና ወኪል መሆን አልነበረበትም። ይህ እጅግ በጣም ያሳዝናል። ለፍርድ መቅረብ ካለበት ከፋሺስቱ የጋላ-ኦሮሞ አገዛዝ፣ ከሕወሓት፣ ከፋኖ/ቄሮ ወዘተ ብዙም አንጠብቅም፤ ነገር ግን ቤተ ክህነት ተብየው ምን እያደረገ ነው? አዎ! የኢትዮጵያ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ቤተክርስቲያንን እንደ ሩሲያ እና ዩክሬን ይከፋፈል ዘንድ በሉሲፈራውያኑ በተሰጠው አጀንዳ መሰረት ምንም ነገር ላለማድረግ ወስኗል፤ እንዲያውም ቤተ ክርስቲያኗ ትዋርድ እና ትኮነን ዘንድ ስለ አለቁት ሁለት ሚሊየን በጎቻቸው፣ ስለሚራቡት፣ ቤቶቻቸው ስለሚፈርሱባቸው እና ስለሚፈናቀሉት ሃያ ሚሊየን የሚጠጉ ኦርቶዶክስ ክርስቲያን ምዕመናን ጉዳይ ሳይሆን ስለ ገንዘብ፣ 'አባ ሕፃን' ስለተባለው ጋላ-ኦሮሞ ፌንጣ ድራማ ብቻ እንዲወራ እያደረጉ ነው። ይህን በደንብ እንታዘብ። ሮይተርስ ፋሺስቱ ጋላ-ኦሮሞ አገዛዝ በትግራይ ስለፈጸመው የእርዳታ ምግብ አቅርቦት ስርቆት ከሦስት ቀናት በፊት ባወጣው ዘገባው ጉዳዩ አሳስቧቸው እንዲናገሩ የተደረጉት የካቶሊክ ቤተ ክርስቲያን ጳጳስ መሆናቸውን ልብ እንበል። ይህ እንግዲህ በስልት መሆኑ ነው።

ሃገር እንድትጠላ፣ ቤተክርስቲያን እንድትጠላ፣ ኢትዮጵያዊ መስለው፣ ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ክርስቲያን መስለው ጠላቶቻችን አስቀድመው ወደ ውስጥ ገብተዋል። ከስድስት ዓመታት በፊት የፋሺስቱን ጋላ-ኦሮሞ አገዛዝ ገና ሥልጣን ላይ እንዳወጡት፤ “የኢትዮጵያን ግዛቶች መጀመሪያ በቋንቋ ከፋፈሏቸው፤ ቆየት ብለው ደግሞ ቤተ ክርስቲያንን በጎሳ እና ነገድ ይከፋፍሏታል፣ አሁን መፈንቅለ መንግስት አካሂደዋል፣ ቀጥሎ ደግሞ መፈንቅለ ቤተ ክህነት ያካሂዳሉ” በማለት ደጋግሜ ሳወሳ ነበር። አሁን እያየን ያለነው ይህን ነው።

ዛሬ ከሃዲዎቹ የዳግማዊ ምንሊክ የመጨረሻ ትውልድ እርዝራዦች ሉሲፈራውያኑ በሰጧቸው በዲያብሎሳዊው ፍኖተ ካርታቸው መሠረት በትግራይ እና ኦሮሞ ክልሎች የራሳቸውን 'መንበር' አስቀድመው እንዲያቋቁም አድርገዋል፤ አሁን የአማራ ክልል እየተጠበቀ ነው። በዚህም ክልል ሆን ብለው የጭፍጨፋ ሁኔታ በማዘጋጀት ዕልቂቶችን ይፈጽማሉ (ልብ እንበል፤ በትግራይም ሆነ በአማራ ክልል እርስበርስ የሚቃረኑ ኃይሎች የሚያካሂዷቸው ጦርነቶች የሉም፤ እየተካሄደ ያለው ሁሉም አካላት በትቀነባበረ መልክ የሚያካሂዱት ክርስቲያኖችን ከምድረ ገጽ የማጥፊያ ብሎም የተረፈው ኢትዮጵያዊ ኢትዮጵያዊነቱን እና ተዋሕዶ ክርስትናውን እንዲተው የማድረጊያ ጂሃዳዊ ጦርነቶች ናቸው። ሰሞኑን 'ፋኖን እንደግፋለን' ከሚሉ የቤተ ክርስቲያን አገልጋዮች በኩል እየሰማን እኮ ነው፣ “ቤተ ክህነት በእኛ ላይ ስለሚደርሰው ግፍና በደል የማትናገር ከሆነ እኛም እንደ ትግራይ እና ኦሮሞ የራስችንን ቤተ ክህነት እንመሠርታለን” እያሉን እኮ ነው። ኢ-አማኒያኑ እነ እስክንድር ነጋ እና አጋሮቹ አስቀድመው፤ “አማራ ሆይ በኢትዮጵያዊነትህ ስለቆምክ ነው እይተጠቃህ ያለኽው፣ አሁን ተወውና በአማራነት ተደራጅ/ተነሳ...” ሲሉ ነበር። አይይይይ!

ለማንኛውም ይህች ቤተክህነት ከላይ እስከታች ካባ ባጠለቁ ጴንጤዎች፣ ካቶሊኮች እና ዋቀፌናዎች የተሞላች መሆኗ ዛሬ በደንብ የሚታይ ነው። ስለ አክሱም ጽዮን ጭፍጨፋ ያልተነፈሰች ቤተክህነት ልክ ሙዛቸውን የተነጠቁት ዝንጀሮዎች እንደ ሚጮኹበት ፓርላማ፣ ገንዘብ ብቻ የሚታያቸው ከሃዲዎች የተሰባሰቡባት ከንቱ ቤተ ክህነት ናት።

ከመቶ ሰላሳ ዓመታት፣ ከዘመነ ዳግማዊ ምንሊክ ጀምሮ ጋላ-ኦሮሞዎቹ እና ኦሮማራዎች በተደጋጋሚ በረሃብ የዘር ማጥፋት ጦርነት እንዲካሄድባቸው የተደረጉት አክሱም ጽዮን (ትግራይ) እና ላሊበላ (ቤተ አምሐራ) ብቻ መሆናቸውን ልብ እንበል። ልክ ዛሬ በአዲስ አበባ ሳይቀር ከቤተ ክርስቲያን አካባቢ የሚኖሩ ክርስቲያኖችን ቤታቸውን እያፈራረሱ እንዲባረሩ እና በድሕነት ቀስበቀስ እንዲያልቁ እንደሚያደርጉት በአክሱም እና ላሊበላ የሚኖሩትን ጥንታውያኑን ክርስቲያን አባቶቻችንን እና እናቶቻችን በጥይት እና በረሃብ በመጨፍጨፍ፣ በማስራብ እና በማፈናቀል ቤተ ክርስቲያኗን ባዶ ለማስቀረት እየተሠራ ያለ ዲያብሎሳዊ ሥራ መሆኑንም ልብ እንበል። አስቀድመው “አሳውን ለማጥመድ ባሕሩን ማድረቅ” ብለውናል እኮ።

😢😢😢 ዋይ! ዋይ! ዋይ! 😠😠😠

💭 The 1984 Famine in Ethiopia Was Preventable. Today, We Have The Knowledge And Resources to Avert Another Tragedy In Tigray

His regime was estimated to be responsible for the deaths of 0.5 million to 2 million Ethiopians, mostly during the famine. Of course, he has never been brought to justice, becoming a role model for others who commit atrocities with impunity.

Lord Alton highlighted the #Genocide in Tigray and the continuing failure to bring to justice the men who used food as a weapon of war and have inflicted such suffering.

My Lords, the whole House is indebted to the noble Baroness, Lady Featherstone, for initiating today’s important debate. During her remarks, she referred to the consequences of indebtedness on development—a point taken up by the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Sheffield. Forty years ago, on 22 November 1984, in the House of Commons, I challenged the then Government on their policy on Ethiopia, stressing that Ethiopia was still paying back more in debt than it was receiving in aid.

As the noble Baroness rightly remarked, in comments that were echoed very movingly by her friend the noble Lord, Lord Oates, the catastrophe in Ethiopia was brought into our homes by the extraordinary journalism of the BBC’s Michael Buerk. His devastating first hand accounts roused our consciences and indignation —a point to which I will return in my comments.

I will follow what was said by the noble Lord, Lord Browne of Ladyton, and roll the clock forward from the two years of war in Tigray between 2020 and 2022 to the situation there now. Professor Jan Nyssen of Ghent University, a leading European authority on the war, put the number of war fatalities at between 300,000 and 500,000 people, including 50,000 to 100,000 from fighting, 150,000 to 200,000 due to famine and 100,000 from a lack of medical attention. To be clear, this was manmade, but no men have been brought to justice.

Professor Alex de Waal, the executive director of World Peace Foundation, draws parallels with the catastrophic situation in 1984. He says:

“In 1984, the Ethiopian government wanted the world to believe that its revolution heralded a bright new era of prosperity, and foreign donors refused to believe warnings of starvation until they saw pictures of dying children on the BBC news”.

On Tuesday evening, while speaking here at a meeting held in the Palace, I was struck by the intervention of a Tigrayan who believed that a complete denial of media access to the region from 2020 to 2022 enabled the regime to repeat these unspeakable acts of horror—these atrocities. That meeting was held to discuss a report of the New Lines Institute, undertaken over two years and comprising some 100,000 words. It concludes that the crime of genocide has occurred in Tigray. I have a copy for the Minister, which I will give to him during the debate.

The Minister will know then, having seen the report, that that the situation has echoes of 1984. Ethiopia, as we heard from the noble Lord, Lord Oates, was then ruled by the Marxist-Leninist, pro-Soviet Derg. That ended in 1991, when its leader, Mengistu, fled to Zimbabwe. The House should note that an Ethiopian court found him guilty of genocide in absentia. His regime was estimated to be responsible for the deaths of 0.5 million to 2 million Ethiopians, mostly during the famine. Of course, he has never been brought to justice, becoming a role model for others who commit atrocities with impunity.

In September 2023 I chaired a cross-party inquiry, which published a report entitled The Three Horsemen of the War in Tigray: Mass Killings, Sexual Violence and Starvation. It called on the UK Government and other actors to provide a response commensurate with the gravity and scale of what had occurred. It made clear that starvation in Tigray is not an unintended consequence of the conflict but, as we heard from the noble Baroness, Lady Helic, a method of war. That finding is underlined in the New Lines inquiry, which concludes that there was an

“intent to destroy Tigrayans as an ethnic group, in whole or in part”.

That is one of the criteria for the crime of genocide, fuelled by torture, rape, mutilation and sexual violence. Another criterion—one of those factors taken into account when declaring a genocide—is the prevention of birth, illustrated by the slogan:

“A Tigrayan womb should never give birth”.

In October 2021, Mark Lowcock, the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator, commented on the situation in Tigray, including the attempt to block aid from going into the region. These are his words:

“There’s not just an attempt to starve six million people but an attempt to cover up what’s going on. What we’re seeing play out, I think, is potentially the worst famine the world has seen in the 21st century … What’s happening is that Ethiopian authorities are running a sophisticated campaign to stop aid from getting in by, for example, making it impossible for truck drivers to operate by setting up checkpoints with officials and militia people, by preventing fuel from getting in … And what they are trying to do is starve the population of Tigray into subjugation or out of existence, but to avoid the opprobrium that would still be associated with a deliberate, successful attempt to create a famine taking the lives of millions of people”.

In 2021 Pekka Haavisto, Finland’s Foreign Minister and a European Union special envoy to Ethiopia, said that, following his talks with Prime Minister Abiy and other Ministers, he believed that they were

“going to wipe out the Tigrayans for 100 years”.

In response to our cross-party inquiry, the Tigrayan Advocacy and Development Association told us:

“The Ethiopian, Eritrean, and Amhara forces left a trail of scorched earth … in which they deliberately burned houses, forests, and field crops ready for harvest; cut mango orchards, papaya trees, and plant nurseries; mixed grains with soil; looted and slaughtered livestock; and killed hundreds of protected wild animals. To ensure no harvest for the next season, ENDF, EDF, ASF, and Fano militia worked in tandem to block vital agricultural supplies, including seeds, destroyed and looted farm tools and prevented farmers from tilling their land during the most crucial period”.

Martin Griffiths, the UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs reported that, at the height of the crisis, 100 trucks a day of aid needed to get to Tigray but only 10% had gained access in the previous three months. New Lines highlights the shooting of truck drivers and the arrest and detention of drivers before they reached Tigray as another way of preventing food getting through.

The restrictions of aid continued after the ceasefire and during the informal truce. Although WFP and OCHA reported a resumption of aid deliveries at the beginning of April 2022, in reality, while they estimated that 115 food trucks would be needed every day throughout May, convoys were able to bring supplies into Tigray on only six occasions.

That brings us to today. In February 2024, Tigray officials warned of an unfolding famine that could equal or eclipse the 1984 famine. Ethiopia’s ombudsman said it confirmed the starvation deaths of at least 351 people in Tigray and another 21 in the neighbouring Amhara region as a result of drought and instability. Once again, the scale of this tragedy—like that in Sudan, as we have heard—has been massively under- reported.

In February the Guardian reported that “humanitarians have mostly kept quiet, fearful of losing their operating licences”.

It went on to say:

“In private, however, their language is stark. A recent memo circulated among aid agencies warns that ‘starvation and death are inevitable … in considerable numbers’ from March onwards in some areas of Tigray if aid does not reach them soon. Another says child malnutrition rates”—

the role that malnutrition can play in long-term development was emphasised earlier in the debate by the noble Baroness, Lady Featherstone, and others—

“are as high as 47% in parts of Oromia, Ethiopia’s biggest region”.

On 30 July, I asked the Minister to comment on reports that more than 2 million were reported to be at risk of starvation in Tigray. He responded:

“The humanitarian community is targeting 3.8 million people … with food assistance”.

I was pleased to hear that the UK is leading a pledging conference. I echo the question asked by the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay, as to how much of the $610 million has been raised and deployed.

I ask once more: what is being done to bring those responsible to justice? I hope, like the noble Lords, Lord Oates and Lord Browne, that in another 40 years there will not be a similar parliamentary debate asking why those with political power in 2024 did no better than those who went before them.

In November 1984, I intervened in a debate in the House of Commons to point out that (col 420, Nov 22nd) “ £3 million in loan charges had to be rescheduled because Ethiopia was still repaying debts to the United Kingdom” and that in 1984 it was “estimated that Third world countries would pay more money back to developed countries than we would give them?”

I also referred to the raid on “existing aid programmes this year to feed the hungry in Ethiopia, which will have a long-term effect on other Third world countries”

I regularly contrasted public policy with the extraordinary generosity of Liverpool constituents and the remarkable civic activism and altruism, all over the country which was given such focus by Band Aid and Bob Geldof.

The UN mechanism to monitor the situation in Ethiopia ceased to exist last year, along with other regional mechanisms established to report on human rights violations in the Tigray war. The Tigray War never ceased, despite the cessation of hostilities agreement. The weapons may have been silenced. However, the war on the people of Tigray continues by other means.

Tigray represents a humanitarian disaster but it also represents an abject failure by the international community.

Forty Years Ago, A BBC News Report Shook The World – And Kickstarted White Saviourism

👉 Courtesy: The Independent

It is 40 years since the “report that shook the world” – the Six O’Clock News bulletin about the famine in Ethiopia that triggered a humanitarian effort unlike any other.

By October 1984, drought and conflict in a remote part of northern Ethiopia had left millions on the brink of starvation. The BBC sent Michael Buerk to report on the emerging catastrophe.

As Britain tucked into its tea, we witnessed the most appalling images of starving people – children with protruding ribcages, women trying to feed their babies from dry breasts, people simply too weak to swat away the flies landing on their faces.

Against this horrific footage of the dead and dying, Buerk intoned: “Dawn... and as the sun breaks through the piercing chill of night on the plain outside Korem, it lights up a biblical famine, now, in the 20th century...”

It was a landmark moment in TV journalism – and its impact on the viewing public was immediate. By the end of the year, a charity single, “Do They Know It’s Christmas” – recorded in a single day by leading pop luminaries (and Phil Collins) – had sold more than 3 million copies, with every penny going to Ethiopian famine relief.

It would eventually raise £8m – but not before it had paved the way for an even bigger charitable effort: Live Aid, the 16-hour music marathon organised by Bob Geldof that was beamed live to 1.5 billion people worldwide.

And yet, four decades on, the BBC news report that pricked the world’s conscience and kickstarted this unprecedented relief effort (as well as institutions such as Comic Relief and Red Nose Day) will strike today’s viewers as hyperbolic at best, cringeworthy at worst.

I don’t just mean Buerk’s description of the famine “as almost biblical in its intensity – unbearable, and the closest thing to hell on Earth”. To describe starvation in such terms suggests that blame can be attributed to those caught up in it, plagues only being visited upon people who have offended God.

It isn’t just that the news report hasn’t aged well – showing emaciated Black people who needed to be saved by the benevolence of white people could be the dictionary definition of “problematic” – but that the entire charitable juggernaut is shot through with what we now know as white saviourism.

Where to begin? How about the lyrics of that song? Ethiopia is home to one of the oldest Christian communities in the world; 68 per cent of the population is Christian. The very idea that they didn’t know about Christmas was both ignorant and insulting.

Referring to Africa, a vast continent, as though it is one country – one where “the only water flowing is the bitter sting of tears”, “where nothing ever grows, no rain or rivers flow” – could be classed as a basic schoolboy error or a hate crime, depending on how benevolent or otherwise you feel.

It is easy to get caught up in the nostalgia for what was an era-defining moment for eighties youth culture. Our favourite stars – the Durans! the Spandaus! – set aside their differences to record a charity single. Live Aid organiser Geldof swore on live TV. It was all so new and exciting. Such a time to be alive.

I remember how excited I was seeing so many stars in the studio together for the “Do They Know It’s Christmas” video, an ensemble that included Paul Young, Boy George, and the man I was convinced I would grow up and marry, George Michael. My friends and I would divide up the lyrics, line by line, and I would strain my larynx to screech: “And there won’t be snow in Africa this Christmastime.” No one noticed the ice cap on top of Kilimanjaro, then?

In 2014, when a new version was recorded, rapper Fuse ODG, who is of Ghanaian heritage, turned down a request to appear on it, explaining that the lyrics don’t reflect what Africa truly is. The stereotypes perpetuated by Band Aid have prevailed.

I once watched a compere in a comedy club I was working at speaking to a young Black couple who told him that, before the show, they’d been out to dinner. Without missing a beat, he asked if their food had been served in a package thrown from an aeroplane. There were gasps and awkward muffled laughter throughout the audience.

I am from a Caribbean background, but I have friends from an African background who were so hurt by the stereotypes that, growing up, they sometimes pretended to be Caribbean.

While I was performing on a BBC comedy show in Ireland, an audience member brought up the fact that in his classroom at school, they had a big, glass collection jar labelled “Black Babies”. He explained how his teacher would encourage pupils to raise money for them. Quite who these “Black Babies” were, nobody in the audience seemed to know, despite all having grown up with such jars in their own classrooms.

💭 The Untold Genocide: Oromos Massacred 60 Million Non-Oromo Ethiopians in The Past 130 Years

https://rumble.com/v5enabh-the-untold-genocide-oromos-massacred-60-million-non-oromo-ethiopians-in-the.html

https://wp.me/piMJL-dD2

💭 ያልተነገረው የዘር ማጥፋት ወንጀል፤ ባለፉት ፻፴/130 አመታት የ፷/60 ሚሊዮን ኦሮሞ ያልሆኑ ኢትዮጵያውያን እልቂት

👹 በሉሲፈራውያኑ ኤዶማውያን ሮማውያን + በፕሮቴስታንት ሉተራውያን + በሰይጣን አምላኬዎቹ ኤዶማውያን ኦቶማን ቱርኮችና በአረቦች ሤራ ወደ አፍሪቃው ቀንድና ኢትዮጵያ መጥተው እንዲሠፍሩ የተደረጉት ጋላ-ኦሮሞዎች ለአክሱማዊቷ ኢትዮጵያ እና ኦርቶዶክስ ተዋሕዶ ሃይማኖቷ እጅግ ሥር የሰደደ ጥላቻ እንዳላቸው ያለፉት መቶ ሰላሳ ዓመታት ታሪክ በደንብ አስተምሮናል በግልጽ አሳይቶናል።

• 😈 ዳግማዊ ምኒልክ፤ ግማሹ ኦሮሞ + ግማሹ አማራ = ኦሮሞ (በሥውር ሙስሊም / የሥጋ ሰው)

• 😈 ኃይለ ሥላሴ፡ ግማሹ ኦሮሞ + ግማሹ ስልጤ /አማራ = ኦሮሞ (በሥውር ሙስሊም / የሥጋ ሰው)

• 😈 መንግስቱ ኃይለ ማርያም፡ ግማሹ ኦሮሞ + ግማሹ ወላይታ/አማራ = ኦሮሞ (በሥውር ሙስሊም / የስጋ ሰው)

• 😈 አብይ አህመድ አሊ = ግማሹ ኦሮሞ + ግማሹ አማራ = ኦሮሞ (በሥውር ሙስሊም / የሥጋ ሰው)

♱ ክርስቲያን አክሱማዊቷን ኢትዮጵያ ለመደለል እና ለማታላለ መጠሪያ ስሞቻቸውን 'ምንሊክ'፣ 'ኃይለ ሥላሴ'፣ 'ኃይለ ማርያም' ወዘተ ብለው እንዲሰይሙ ተደርገዋል።

የዘንዶው ዘሮች ሕዝበ ክርስቲያኑ መከፋፈሉንና መዳከሙን ሲገነዘቡ፤ 'ደመቀ መኮነን ሀሰን' + 'አብዮት አህመድ አሊ' የተባሉትን አጋንንታዊ ስሞች የተሰጣቸውን የዋቄዮ-አላህ-ባፎሜት-ሉሲፈር ባሪያዎችን ሥልጣን ላይ ለማውጣት ደፈሩ።

የአፄ ኃይለ ሥላሴ አሟማት እኮ የሚያስተምረን በአክሱማዊቷ ኢትዮጵያ ላይ፣ በታቦተ ጽዮን ላይ ያመጹት ሁሉ ከሃዲዎች እጣ ፈንታቸው ምን እንደሚሆን ነው። ያውም በራሳቸው ሰዎች በአሰቃቂ ሁኔታ ይጠረጋሉ...ግራኝ አብዮት አህመድ አሊ እና አጋሮቹ እነ ኢሳያስ አፈወርቂ አብደላ-ሃሰን፣ ጌታቸው ረዳ፣ ብርሃኑ ነጋ፣ ሽመልስ እብዱሳ፣ እዳነች እባቤ፣ ተመስገን ጥሩነህ፣ ጃዋር ወዘተ ተመሳሳይ አሟሟት ነው የሚጠብቃቸው...ከአባታቸው ከመንግስቱ ኃይለ ማርያም ወደ ገሃነም እሳት ይጣሉ ዘንድ ግድ ነው። ሁሉም ነገር አልቆለታል!

😈 ከዋቄዮ-አላህ-ባፎሜት-ሉሲፈር የአህዛብ ባዕድ አምልኮ ጋር በቀጥታ የተያያዙትና ለዚህም ተጠያቂዎቹ የኢትዮጵያ ነቀርሣዎች፤ አራቱ የምንሊክ 'ብሔር በሔረሰቦች' ትውልዶች እነዚህ ናቸው፦

• ☆፩ኛ. የሻዕቢያ/ህወሓት/የኢሕአዴግ/ኦነግ/ብልጽግና/ኢዜማ/አብን/ቄሮ/ፋኖ/ ትውልድ

• ☆፪ኛ. የደርግ መንግስቱ ኃይለ ማርያም ትውልድ

• ☆፫ኛ. የቀዳማዊ ኃይለ ሥላሴ ትውልድ

• ☆፬ኛ. የአፄ ምኒልክ ፪ኛ/አቴቴ ጣይቱ ትውልድ

ናቸው።

☆ ዲቃላው ዳግማዊ ምንሊክ ከጣልያን፣ ጀርመን፣ ፈረንሳይ፣ ቱርኮች፣ አረቦችና ኦሮማራ ዲቃላ ሕዝቡ ጋር ሆኖ የኢትዮጵያን እናት አክሱም ጽዮንን ጨፈጨፋት፣ አስራባት

☆ ዲቃላው ኃይለ ሥላሴ ከብሪታኒያ፣ ጀርመን፣ አረቦችና ኦሮማራ ዲቃላ ሕዝቡ ጋር ሆኖ የኢትዮጵያን

እናት አክሱም ጽዮንን ጨፈጨፋት፣ አስራባት

☆ ዲቃላው መንግስቱ ኃይለ ማርያም ከሶቪየት ሕብረት፣ ቻይና፣ ሰሜን ኮሪያ፣ ኩባ፣ የመን፣ ግብጽና ኦሮማራ ዲቃላ ሕዝቡ ጋር ሆኖ የኢትዮጵያን እናት አክሱም ጽዮንን ጨፈጨፋት፣ አስራባት

☆ የዲቃላው ስብሐት ነጋ ሕወሓት፣ ኢህአዴግና ኦነግ/ብልጽግና ከመላው ዓለም፣ ከቱርክ፣ ከኢራን፣ ከአረቦች፣ ከግብጽ፣ ከኤርትራ፣ ከአማራ፣ ከሶማሌ እና ከጋላ-ኦሮሞ ዲቃላ ሕዝባቸው ጋር ሆነው የኢትዮጵያን እናት አክሱም ጽዮንን በጨፈጨፍ፣ በማስራብና ለበሽታ በማጋለጥ ላይ ይገኛሉ።

❖<ወደ ገላትያ ሰዎች ምዕራፍ ፭>ወደ ገላትያ ሰዎች ምዕራፍ ፭>❖

፲፱ የሥጋ ሥራም የተገለጠ ነው እርሱም ዝሙት፥ ርኵሰት፥ ፳ መዳራት፥ ጣዖትን ማምለክ፥ ምዋርት፥ ጥል፥ ክርክር፥ ቅንዓት፥ ቁጣ፥ አድመኛነት፥ ፳፩ መለያየት፥ መናፍቅነት፥ ምቀኝነት፥ መግደል፥ ስካር፥ ዘፋኝነት፥ ይህንም የሚመስል ነው። አስቀድሜም እንዳልሁ፥ እንደዚህ ያሉትን የሚያደርጉ የእግዚአብሔርን መንግሥት አይወርሱም። ፳፪ የመንፈስ ፍሬ ግን ፍቅር፥ ደስታ፥ ሰላም፥ ትዕግሥት፥ ቸርነት፥ በጎነት፥ እምነት፥ የውሃት፥ ራስን መግዛት ነው።

♱ The genocidal war against ancient Ethiopian Orthodox Christians of the Tigray region will mark its third year, and it's been one year since the CoHA was signed between the Ethiopian government and Tigrayan forces in Pretoria, South Africa. Yet, Tigray remains in the shadow of despair: mourning its unimaginable losses; incapable of providing support for its war veterans and women and girls subjected for rape and other sexual violence; and with significant portions of its land still under enemy occupation, bearing witness to continuous horrifying acts of ethnic cleansing and brutality. And the majority of its cities still serve as shelters for the IDPs, without sufficient aid.

😈 Menelik ll: Half Oromo + Half Amhara = Oromo (Crypto-Muslim / Man of the flesh)

😈 Haile Selassie: Half Oromo + Half Silte /Amhara = Oromo (Crypto-Muslim / Man of the flesh)

😈 Mengistu Hailemariam: Half Oromo + Half Welayta/Amhara = Oromo (Crypto-Muslim / Man of the flesh)

😈 Abiy Ahmed Ali ´= Half Oromo + Half Amhara = Oromo (Crypto-Muslim / Man of the flesh)

❖ ❖

“Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,”

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